Adjustable-width roll forming machine



R. D. BRAUN ADJUSTABLE-WIDTH ROLL FORMING MACHINE Nov. 24, 1970 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 20, 1968 Nov. 24, 1970 R. D. BRAUN ADJUSTABLE-WIDTH ROLL FORMING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 20, 1968 INVENTOR RICHARD D. BRAUN m H A United States Patent 3,543,299 ADJUSTABLE-WIDTH ROLL FORMING MACHINE Richard D. Braun, Troy, Mich., assignor to The Flagler Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Filed Sept. 20, 1968, Ser. No. 761,167 Int. Cl. B21d /08 US. Cl. 72-181 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This machine employs a succession of partly cylindrical and partly frusto-conical power-driven forming rolls, the latter being of progressively increasing apex angles from the entrance end to the exit end of the machine. Cylindrical hold-down rolls are arranged above the cylindrical forming rolls to hold a portion of a flat sheet metal strip horizontal while the remaining portion is gradually bent by successive increments into a perpendicular Wall. Both the forming rolls and the hold-down rolls are mounted on a carriage which is movable laterally on the machine sub-frame relatively to a longitudinal stop member for one edge of the sheet metal strip, the carriage being adjustably movable laterally of the direction of travel of the sheet metal strip in order to vary the location of the bending line and consequently vary the proportionate widths of the vertical and horizontal walls of the angle member thus formed. Two such angle members mounted in oposing relationship and joined along their free edges constitute a conduit of rectangular cross-section for heating or ventilation purposes or for the conveying of materials or for housings. The fiat metal strip, prior to being thus bent, is preferably provided, in a conventional machine, with reversely-bent locking edge portions in order to facilitate final assembly of the conduit.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Hitherto, conduits for heating and ventilation or for similar purposes have been of limited lengths because the mutually perpendicular walls of the sheet metal conduit or component were produced in a so-called bending brake, the length of throat of which limited the length of the resulting conduit component thereby produced. Furthermore, this prior procedure required the sheet metal strip, after passing through an edge-bending machine for producing a reversely-bent locking edge portion, to be turned at right angles by two expert workmen in inserting the strip sidewise into the bending brake. Two apprentices assisted the two skilled workmen in this procedure, thereby resulting in a high cost of production of sheet metal conduit components. With the roll forming machine of the present invention, the flat sheet metal strip is not limited as to its length. It first passes longitudinally through the conventional lock-edge-forming machine and then passes immediately and longitudinally into the present machine without requiring any turning or handling and eliminating the expensive labor previously required, as well as eliminating the bending brake. In contrast to the two skilled workmen and two apprentices previously required, with the machine of the present invention one apprentice can form a complete duct component.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of an adjustable roll forming machine, according to one aspect of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a horizontal section, taken along the line 2-2 in FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 3 is a right-hand or entrance end elevation of the machine shown in FIGURE 1, on a slightly enlarged scale.

Referring to the drawings in detail, FIGURES 1 and 2 show an adjustable roll-forming machine, generally designated 10, as consisting of a table framework 12 or base having a top plate 14 supporting spaced parallel rails 16 upon which travels an elongated laterally-movable carriage 18 by means of rollers 20. The carriage 18 is movable laterally toward and away from a fixed work support 22 of built-up angle members carrying an elongated work-supporting plate 24 which has an elongated longitudinal stop bar 26 running lengthwise thereof along its oute redge. The elongated workpiece or metal sheet or plate 28, the left-hand portion 29 of which is to be bent relatively to the right-hand portion 2.7 shown in FIGURE 3, rests against the stop bar 26 while the carriage 18 moves laterally with respect to the fixed wor-k support 22 in order to accommodate different widths of metal sheet or plate to be bent or to position the bend or fold line at different locations within the metal sheet.

Mounted on the base plate 30 of the carriage 18 are multiple longitudinally-spaced pairs of outer and inner angle bearing brackets 32 and 34 respectively which are bored to receive the opposite ends of shafts 36 conventionally power-driven by V-belts or sprocket chains (not shown) and rotatably supporting graduated bending rollers 38A to 38]. Each roller consists of a cylindrical portion 40 and a frusto-conical portion 44. The cylindrical portions 40 are of constant diameter, whereas the frustoconical portions 44 have conical surfaces which form angles with the axis 46 of their respective shafts ranging in increments of ten degrees from 10 for bending roll 38A to for bending roll 38]. These various angles have been indicated in FIGURE 3 by the reference chap acters 44A to 44], and their large ends have been similarly designated in FIGURE 1. Thus, the circles indicating the outer or larger ends of the surfaces 44A to 44] are of successively increasing diameter in FIGURE 1.

The elongated metal strip or sheet 2 8 constituting the workpiece is bent along a longitudinal bend or fold line 48 (FIGURE 3) which is held down against the cylindrical roller portions 40 by outer and inner holddown idler rollers 50 and 52 respectively of constant diameter mounted on a shaft 54 rotatably supported in depending parallel outer and inner bracket arms 56 and 58 respectively welded to a bridge plate 60 which in turn is bolted or otherwise secured to an upper plate 62. The upper plate '62 runs the entire length of the carriage 18 and is bolted or otherwise secured to spaced parallel uprights 64 connected to each other by upper and lower longitudinal frame bars 66 and 68 and secured to the base plate 30 of the carriage 18.

In operation, the elongated metal strip or sheet 28 which has had its outer edge bent reversely at 70 (FIG. 3) for subsequent joining with another similar member to form a duct of rectangular cross-section is fed out of the edge-bending machine onto the work supporting plate 24 with its right-hand edge against the gauge bar 26 and its left-hand portion entering the narrow space between the initial lower roller 38A and the initial upper holddown rollers 50 and 52. As the strip 28 is fed in between the rollers 38 and 50, the left-hand portion is bent upward along the fold line or bending line 48 at an angle of 10 degrees to the right-hand portion of the sheet 28, and as it passes over the 20-degree roller 38B it acquires an angle of 20 degrees, increased to 30 degrees at roller 38C and so forth until it reaches the 90-degree roller 38] whose bending surface is at right angles to the axis of its shaft, completing the 90 degree bend along the bending line 48.

Meanwhile the portions of the sheet or strip 28 following thereafter receive the same successive bending by the increasingly angled beding rolls 38A to 38] until the entire sheet 28, now consisting of two portions bent at right angles to one another, emerges at the left-hand end of the machine (FIG. 1). It is then assembled with a correspondingly-shaped angle sheet or strip bent in a similar manner to form the duct of rectangular cross-section, the edges interlocking by their reversely-bent construction in various ways well-known to the sheet metal trade.

If it is subsequently decided to roll a sheet or strip 28 of metal of a greater width than the strip 28, or if the lefthand or bent portion 29 is to be wider or narrower in proportion to the right-hand portion 27, the carriage 18 is moved toward or away from the fixed work support 22 so that the fold line 48 is at a lesser or greater distance respectively from the longitudinal stop bar 26. The carriagc 18 is then clamped in its adjusted position and rolling proceeds in the manner described above.

It will be understood by those skilled in the sheet metal rolling art that the shafts 54 and 36 will be mounted for adjustment toward or away from one another if different thicknesses of metal sheets 28 are to be rolled. Such adjustment mechanisms of rolling mill shafts are conventional.

What I claim is:

1. An adjustable-width roll forming machine, comprising an elongated base framework having an entrance end and an exit end and elongated workpiece edge stop means extending therealong between said ends,

carriage guide members mounted on said base framework and extending transversely thereof in spaced parallel relationship,

a carriage mounted on said guide members for adjustment therealong toward and away from said stop means,

a multiplicity of sheet material forming rolls mounted on said carriage with their axes disposed transversely thereto in longitudinally-spaced parallel relationship and adapted to be drivingly connected to a source of power,

said forming rolls having cylindrical roll sections and frusto-conical roll sections tapered toward said cylindrical sections and meeting said cylindrical sections at a bending line therebetween,

the tapers of said frusto-conical roll sections increasing by increments from a minimum taper at said entrance end to a maximum taper at said exit end,

and workpiece hold-down means also mounted on said carriage in spaced relationship to said cylindrical sections of said forming rolls.

2. An adjustable-width roll forming machine, according 4 to claim 1, wherein the work-engaging surface of the frusto-conical section of the forming roll adjacent said exit end is substantially perpendicular to the axis thereof.

3. An adjustable-Width roll forming machine, according to claim 1, wherein an elevated workpiece supporting structure is mounted on said base framework and wherein said stop means is mounted on said workpiece supporting structure.

4. An adjustable-width roll forming machine, according to claim 3, wherein said workpiece supporting structure is fixedly mounted on said base framework adjacent the inner end portions of said carriage guide members.

5. An adjustable-Width roll forming machine, according to claim 4, wherein said workpiece supporting structure includes an elongated longitudinally-extending plate, and wherein said stop means includes a bar extending along said plate remote from said carriage.

6. An adjustable-width roll forming machine, according to claim 1, wherein said carriage has an upright structure mounted thereon and extending therealong, and wherein said hold-down means is secured to said upright structure and depends therefrom.

7. An adjustable-width roll forming machine, according to claim 6, wherein said upright structure has brackets depending therefrom, and wherein said hold-down means is mounted on the lower portions of said brackets.

8. An adjustable-width roll forming machine, according to claim 7, wherein said hold-down means includes shafts mounted on said brackets in spaced parallel relationship and also includes hold-down rollers mounted on said shafts.

9. An adjustable-width roll forming machine, according to claim 1, wherein said hold-down means includes idler roller means disposed above said forming rolls with their axes disposed in spaced parallel relationship to the axes of said forming rolls.

10. An adjustable-width roll forming machine, according to claim 9, wherein said idler roller means includes shafts disposed above said forming rolls in spaced parallel relationship thereto and also includes a pair of hold-down rollers mounted in axially-spaced relationship on each said shaft.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1928 Frahm et a1. 72-181 X 8/1969 Fischer 72178 

